Why No One Needs Resolutions

Tomorrow is the last day of the year and by this time everyone around me and on TV is talking about resolutions. Everyone decides to quit doing something or start doing something else. Then, by February, all bets are off and everyone has gone back to “normal.” Resolutions are only good with follow through, motivation, accountability, and reward. Anyone can say they want to lose ten pounds. I can say that and probably could afford to lose more than that, but saying it and doing it are two different beasts of burden all together. One is a cute little kitty that looks appealing and fluffy. The other is a vicious lion with blood streaking through its fur and zebra skin still dangling from its teeth as it growls and swipes at the sky with its red tinged claws out.

The Big Annual Breakup

I’ve come to realize NaNoWriMo is like a bad boyfriend. You go running around having a great time and things are pretty hot and heavy. You’re seeing each other every day, but not to the point that you’re sick of seeing them, and then, in an instant, it’s December first. Your boyfriend, Nano, has broken up with you, again. He’s gone; the dates, the late nights together, the time spent talking about your feelings/thoughts/characters, and even the cute way he used to count your words with a bar graph. The relationship is all gone.

Sending the Fledglings Out of the Nest

Tomorrow I send out the first of many fiction submissions in almost a year. Hey, life happens. Am I a little nervous? Well, yeah. Of course I am, however the business of writing involves a lot of rejections before you start getting acceptances so I'd rather start getting material out there and receiving rejections already so I can get that much closer to an acceptance.

The best thing about this is that I already know exactly what story I'm going to start revising next and I already know exactly where I'm going to send it. This makes things much more steady, holding the wheel and steering straight ahead, not looking back or getting distracted. I wish these little stories luck, and while I hope for but don't expect instant publications, I look forward to the critiques (from those who give them) to keep pushing my craft and sending these little birds of stories out into the world.